Danish woman gang-rape: Final arguments in court today

A Delhi court on Monday fixed Tuesday for commencing hearing on final arguments in a case related to the alleged gang-rape of a 52-year-old Danish woman by nine persons including three juveniles here in 2014.

Additional Sessions Judge Kaveri Baweja deferred the hearing due to non-availability of the counsel for accused and posted the matter for Tuesday.

In an oral submission, Special Public Prosecutor Atul Shrivastava also told the judge that the prosecution wanted to drop some of the doctors who have already been examined.

To this, the court asked him to make the submission on Tuesday in the presence of the defence counsel as he might have an objection to it. The court had on December 18, 2015 fixed the matter for final arguments after the six adult accused said in their testimonies that they do not want to examine any witness in their defence. During recording of their statements in the court, the six accused had claimed innocence and alleged that the police falsely implicated them in the case. The court had asked over 100 questions each to the six accused Mahendra (26), Mohd Raja (22), Raju (23), Arjun (21), Raju Chakka (22) and Shyam Lal (55).

They had claimed that a day prior to the alleged incident on January 14, 2014, they had hired a prostitute and had physical relations with her and had not done anything with the Danish woman. They had also claimed that the case property was planted on them by the police to implicate them in the matter. The police charge sheet said the nine accused, all vagabonds, had allegedly robbed and gangraped the Danish tourist at knife-point on the night of January 14, 2014 after leading her to a secluded spot close to the Divisional Railway Officers’ Club.